So New, But So Not Ready Freddie
by BiBenji
Summary: Prompt by ChallengeKing: iGoodbye never happened but Freddie moves to LA for college and gets into a fight with Sam and Carly because of it. Tori has to show him around the city before classes start. Pairings are Tori/Freddie, Jade/Cat, implied Sam/Carly. Could become *M* at later date for explicit swearing and sexual content.
1. Chapter 1

**Prompt Request from ChallengeKing: iGoodbye never happened but Freddie moves to LA for college and gets into a fight with Sam and Carly because of it. Tori has to show him around the city before classes start. Pairings are Tori/Freddie, Jade/Cat, implied Sam/Carly.**

**I apologize this is short and not very obvious with where I have in mind for the story to go but before I write more I want to see what kind of demand is out there to even have this story written so bare with me and this broad beginning. Hope you guys can kind of see the David in the stone slab (not to draw parallels between myself and Michaelangelo or anything) :) Thanks!**

"…the fuck is wrong with you?! I mean, shit, you could at least fucking give a damn smoke signal you're even alive anymore! After up and fucking leaving us here with next to no warning you just ignore us? Fuck you, Fredwad, fuck you… _Sam, give me the phone. No, he needs- Sam! _Sorry, Freddie, she's just upset you left. Please call us or text us so we know you're okay, please. We miss you… Bye, Freddie." **'To repeat this message press 3, to save this message press 4, to delete this message press 7- **_**Beep. **_**Message erased**_**.**_**"**

Freddie shook his head and placed his phone back in his pocket. It's been some 4 weeks since he moved to LA but he hasn't gone a day without some sort of threatening message or text from Sam. She's taken it a lot harder than Carly has, it seems. Sighing to himself, Freddie heaved himself out of bed and into the bathroom to get ready for the day. His mom went back to Seattle last week finally, after hours of convincing on Freddie's part, but left him with a small fund for new school clothes, books, and anything else they might not have gotten while she was helping him settle into his new loft. Stepping out of the bathroom, Freddie looked around with a content smile.

It wasn't huge, but it was home. A small kitchen was off to the left of the door, the hallway leading to his room and bathroom to the right. The living room was just past the kitchen, separated by bar area with three stools. His mom had helped him pick out a modest leather couch/love seat set and he later mounted his TV on the wall across from the kitchen with a small entertainment set for his film and audio equipment, of course. The part that sold him on the whole apartment was the balcony. California was vastly different from Washington, the weather being the biggest change, and that balcony let him appreciate the sunny days and warm nights in a private setting.

Scratching at his head, Freddie meandered over to the frig, pulling out a carton of eggs, spinach, and cheese for a quick omelet for breakfast. After cooking up his meal and plating it, he slid the glass door open and stepped out into the morning air. It was warm already at 8:15 in the morning, but summers in southern California tended to be like that he was coming to realize. Even though his apartment complex was on the opposite side of campus as the 405, morning traffic could still be heard through the muggy air. Freddie sighed again; that was something he would miss about Seattle, the slower pace and more relaxed environment. He pulled out his phone once he was done eating, figuring he should actually make an effort to reach out to his friends and at least try to reconcile their tenuous friendship. His thumb hovered over the contact's name for a few moments before pressing the green 'call' button. Freddie swallowed and licked his suddenly dry lips as he listened to it ring over and over…

And then he was dumb struck. "Hey, Freddie," the soft voice on the other line murmured.

"Uh.." Freddie cleared his voice before stuttering out more nonsense, "What- uh- h-hey, Carls. Um, what's up?" He could feel his face grow warm as his embarrassment colored his cheeks.

"Oh, you know, just hanging out. Waiting for Sam to get ready so we can go get our schedules and look around the campus some. How are you?"

Freddie was still so shocked by the soft spoken girl, young woman at 18 now, on the other end of the line. Carly was never as loud or obnoxious as Sam was but she was rarely this quiet, something had to be going on with her.

"I'm okay, good. Mom left last week finally and with classes starting in a few days I'll likely do what you guys are and go check out campus some more on my own, figure out where my classes are and how long it'll take me to get from one to the other." There was a long pause after Freddie spoke that continued on to be awkward but it didn't seem to bother Carly. Finally Freddie cleared his throat again, coughing uneasily. "Hey, look. I'm sorry for not talking to you guys earlier. It's just been crazy since the move and with Mom here and everything, I kinda just needed a clean break to start this new part of my life, ya know?"

Silence filled the space between them for several long moments before a whoosh could be heard, likely from Carly breathing in deeply. "I understand, Freddie. It's new and exciting and different and you have to throw yourself into it."

"Yeah, exactly. It's a great experience getting this scholarship to UCLA and I have to grab the bull by the horns right now and make everything count because this is my future we're talking about and I can't mess this up. But it's going to be amazing and this school is going to be just the stepping stone I need to really get the foundation and instruction I never got back home. There are opportunities around every corner here unlike at home where I was just the film nerd who happened to hang out with you guys. It's time for me to make something of myself and show everyone I'm so much more than that!" Freddie finished in a rush of excitement, nearly bouncing in his seat out on the patio still.

Carly was much more subdued. "I'm really proud of you, Freddie. I'm sure you'll do great things out there." There was a short pause again before, "I gotta go. Thanks for letting me know you are okay, Freddie. And good luck."

"Wait, Car-" Before he could finish that thought, there was a click and then silence again. Pulling his phone away from his ear, Freddie could see Carly clearly hung up on him. With a frown, he rubbed his face oils off the screen on his pants before putting it back in his pocket and gathering his dishes to wash back inside.

After washing his dishes and tidying up the kitchen a bit, Freddie jumped in the shower, hoping to help wash away the uncomfortable feeling his short conversation with Carly left him with. As he was starting his second cycle of shampoo and conditioner, he let his mind wander over his friend's demeanor this morning. In the 8 years he'd known the girl, he had only seen Carly that somber a handful of times and those were when she had her heart broken or she was fighting with Sam the one or two times they had a full on blow-out. When he'd left Seattle Carly was still happily single and according to her plans for the day, she and Sam were just fine, so what was wrong with her? By the time Freddie was done man-scaping (as Sam so lovingly named it) and had rinsed off, he still hadn't come up with an answer. Shaking off the thoughts, he threw on some shorts and a red polo, grabbing his phone, keys, and wallet on his way out the door he slipped on his Aviators and picked a random direction to begin exploring.

XXX

Carly glanced nervously next to her, eyeing her blonde companion anxiously. She knew she shouldn't have said anything to Sam, but she deserved to know Freddie finally reached out as much as she did. Now she just had to deal with the consequences.

She was livid. If she was a cartoon, there would be steam billowing from her ears and the whites of her eyes would be tinted red. But she wasn't a cartoon so instead, Sam was stalking across campus with a scowl etched into her face and her arms rigidly crossed over her chest. If she were honest with herself or anyone else, she'd admit she's not really mad more than hurt. Freddie was her friend; sure their relationship was a little unorthodox and most people wouldn't consider what they have a friendship but it worked for them and always had. Freddie knew her biting remarks were a defense mechanism and more habit than anything else, and Sam knew Freddie hid behind his cameras and computers to keep from exposing his vulnerabilities and weaknesses. It was how they worked, so why the _hell_ was he changing it?! And why didn't he call her after he called Carly? Was she not as important to him anymore? I mean, sure she and Carly were living together and spent nearly every waking (and sleeping) moment together but it still coulda been the considerate thing to do!

It wasn't until a slim hand lightly squeezed her bicep that Sam stopped stomping around and looked up from the sidewalk. They were at the admissions building already. _When the hell did we get here? Where was the rest of this campus? I thought it was a good 15 minute walk from Brewster to here? Isn't Eastern some 300 acres or some shit? _Sam glanced up at the large building in front of her and, for the moment, her anger and hurt was forgotten. Chesney Hall was a sizable brick building with lots of windows and several people milling around its doors. It was the epitome of their existence at this University and frankly, kind of intimidating, though Sam would never admit this out loud.

"Whelp," Sam shrugged, "C'mon, let's get this over with and then explore this hellhole that is now our home for the next 4 or 5 years." Carly just nodded and linked arms with the blonde, pulling her inside the air conditioned building. 45 minutes and one long line later, the girls found themselves comparing prices for the books "required" for their classes.

"You think I really need 3 different books for my Intercultural Communications class?" Sam asked distractedly, skimming the back of one of the books.

The brunette looked up from her own search. "No, it's not likely. Spencer suggested we wait 'til a few days into class before getting books 'cause a lot of books "required" you can just get from the library if you don't have to use them in class and once the professor gives out the syllabus you should know which ones you need to own and which you can get from the library."

Sam rolled her eyes and sighed, exasperated. "If we are waiting until class starts, why are we down here again?"

Brown eyes met blue before looking away bashfully, "I don't know. I guess I'm not really all here right now, I'm sorry."

"It's cool, Carls." Sam put her books back, doing the same with the ones stacked around Carly's feet, before pulling the taller girl up and towards the stairs. "C'mon, Mama's hungry."

"You just had breakfast not even an hour ago. And when are you going to grow out of calling yourself 'Mama'?"

XXX

"Lalalalala I love lollipops and lilies and ladybugs and les-"

"Cat! Enough already, good Lord!"

The small redhead instantly stopped skipping, a pout forming on her lips. "Sorry," she squeaked quietly.

"Really, Jade? When are you going to stop being a bitch?" Tori asked, shooting the taller brunette a dark look.

Jade just smirked, not missing a beat. "When you stop trying to kill us all via bleeding from the ears with your _innocent farm girl voice_," the taller girl mocked.

Cat covered a giggle with her hand and ducked her head into Jade's shoulder when Tori's glare turned in her direction. Tori threw her hands up in the air before turning and striding off towards American Eagle, not caring if the other two followed her or not, but knowing they would. Linking her fingers through Cat's, Jade just smiled and headed into the far too bright clothing store.

The three girls spent hours flitting from store to store trying on various outfits and modeling them for each other. Even the ever moody Jade smiled more frequently, in between spats with Tori (though she secretly loved mocking the girl). Eventually they all started to slow down.

"I'm hungry, Jadey, can we get food soon?" Cat asked, turning large brown eyes up at her girlfriend.

Jade tried to mask her smile with a bored expression, flickering her eyes to Tori who was watching the couple with a small smirk on her mouth. "I'm sure Tori has bought the entire mall by now so I think food should be in order. Sushi?"

"Yay!" Cat jumped up, excitedly clapping before pulling both girls by their arms to the restaurant down the street.

Colliding with something solid, Tori stumbled a bit before righting herself and glaring at Cat. "Jeezes, Cat! I'm not a doll, don't be so rough, the sushi will be here all day." Tori finally turned to see what she was dragged into after Cat squeaked out a 'sorry' only to be met with a guy slightly taller than herself, looking to be around her age.

Instantly, Tori blushed. "I am so sorry about that, she gets a little excited when it comes to food sometimes," she chuckled awkwardly, kicking her shoe against the ground.

"No problem, I have a friend back home who would plow just about anyone over to get to food so it's not really surprising," the guy replied with a charming half smile tugging on one side of his mouth.

"Oh, okay, right… Well.. I guess I should go keep an eye on those two. Sorry again for running into you."

"Don't worry about it, have a nice lunch." With a small wave, he turned and walked down the street and around the corner.

Tori stood watching the mystery guy even after he was out of sight, until Jade roughly flicked the side of her head. "Ow! What was that for?!"

"Stop being a creeper catching flies out here and come order so we can eat, my girl's hungry."

The shorter girl turned and followed Jade back into the restaurant mumbling under her breath. "I will never understand how you guys got together."

Jade smirked, overhearing her grumbling. "I'm great in bed." She just laughed at the disgusted face Tori pulled, no doubt having mental images of her two friends having sex.

XXX

The darker young guy cast another questionable look at his friend, raising an eyebrow at the subtle yet ever present smile on his face as he watched the action on the TV in front of him, though anyone could tell he wasn't really paying attention to the screen. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. "Okay, what's wrong witya face, man? It's like a constipated toddler finally gettin' ta go finally or some shit." His friend's smile immediately dropped to be replaced with a repulsed look causing him to laugh. "Did somethin' happen earlier when you were out?"

Freddie just shrugged noncommittally and took another bite of his pepperoni, olive, artichoke pizza. Dark eyes scanned his face and body carefully before suddenly lighting up. Freddie groaned internally, _this is gunna be good_.

"Oh my God, you got laid didn't you?!" Andre yelped like a highschool girl, nearly vibrating with excitement for his friend. When the boys met 3 weeks ago just after Freddie moved in down the hallway, they immediately hit it off. Andre has been on a mission ever since learning his single status to get Freddie out more and meeting more people. Thus far, it hadn't been going well due to his awkward shyness, but based on the blush traveling up his pale friend's neck and face, it seems Freddie got some on his own. Andre looked on with a proud smile. "I knew LA would loosen your tight ass up a bit eventually, I'm impressed you got on it so fast, bro!"

Heat spread across Freddie's features again as his friend clubbed him on the shoulder rather hard and continued to praise his "dawg-edness", whatever the hell that means. Sure, Freddie is not the most experienced guy out there sexually, especially considering his only experience was a rough time with Sam last year, but hey he's no prude… Generally. After a couple more minutes of basking in Andre's apparent surprise and praise, he set him straight.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Dre, but no, I didn't get laid," Freddie said, shoving more pizza in his mouth and not watching the excited smile drain from his friend's face.

"Dude, what do you mean? You've been practically glowing since you got back earlier from shopping, what else could it be?" Andre questioned, actually making air quotes around the word 'shopping'.

"I was shopping, I needed another pair of pants and a few more polos to buy before school next week, okay? But no, I ran into this girl when I was leaving Soko's Sushi after lunch."

Andre interrupted excitedly again, "Oh! And you got her digits huh? Fred-dawg you get em!"

"Uh, no. I literally ran into her, or she ran into me from her friend pulling her into the restaurant. But she was beautiful and super sweet and seemed like a great girl from the few awkward minutes of conversation we had." That wistful smile was back, only to be crushed by Andre's quick response.

"'A great girl' and 'super sweet'? Dude, stop soundin' gay. No one cares if they're sweet or not, just if they got a nice body! C'mon, didn't they teach you anything way up north?"

"Well, I care about that stuff," Freddie mumbled.

"'Course you do, 'cause you don't know how we do things here in SoCal, ain't that right Beck?" Andre elbowed his long-haired friend who was busy thumbing attacked in a first person shooter game, not paying the other two any attention.

Beck shoved Andre over after his elbowing started to mess with his game. "Yeah, yeah. We'll get you a hot chick soon, Fred, no worries there man. Maybe we can invite Tori and the girls over later, I'm sure they got friends we could introduce you to."

"Whatever, not like I'll see her again anyway."

"That's the spirit!" Andre exclaimed, swinging his arm around Freddie's shoulders, not noticing the other boy tensing from the unfamiliar contact. "Hey, Beck, let's play teams and show Freddie here how it's done Cali-style."

_What have I gotten myself into_, Freddie sighed but picked up a controller, trying to understand the weird sequences his new friends were showing him.

**AN: Okay so this is kinda the set-the-stage chapter. Not sure how I feel about it but I've had a few of those scenes running around my head for several weeks and just finally put them down. Not sure if I'll tweak this first chapter any (probably) but I wanted to get a feel for this story. I haven't written a hetero story in years so not sure how this will be received. So I guess just let me know how you feel on the set up, if y'all think there's story potential, 'cause if not I'll scrap it and wait for other inspiration. As always, thanks for reading! xox B**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Hey guys! So, I'm kind of surprised this story has as much interest as it does, considering the lame first chapter (I apologize for that, btw). The timing of this update is likely how the rest of this story will go. I'm sort of a slow writer, especially when I am not fully into a story like I am in this one right now. So bear with me and the slowish updating on this story. As always, hope everyone enjoys this plot development. Comments and criticism (constructive) are always welcome.**

**Xox**

**B**

Tan, sued loafers clicked out a quick staccato across hot cement, increasing in speed as the seconds ticked by. Freddie wiped his sweaty hands down his cargo shorts for the fifth time in the last five minutes- he knew because he'd checked his phone every time he'd wiped his hands before shoving the device back in his pocket. Sweat started to gather on his brow line and across his back, making him pull at the front of his red polo occasionally to keep it from sticking to his body awkwardly, and then being forced to smooth out the pinched fabric that bunched up every time he pulled at his shirt. To say he was nervous would be an understatement. As soon as Andre had announced that the girls would be over within a few minutes for a little end of the summer get-together, he'd excused himself from the boys' apartment and booked it outside. Even now, nearly ten minutes after leaving the building, the hot California air was only exasperating his situation. It was times like these that Freddie cursed himself for moving to such a ridiculously hot part of the country. _Because Denver, or Indianapolis, or even freaking Boston wasn't good enough? God, I spent my entire life in a perpetual state of rain and clouds, why did I ever think this beach-filled city was a good ide- _A flash of dark hair flipping over bare, sun-kissed shoulders caught his attention out of the corner of his eye, breaking off the mini mental rant. Freddie glanced up to get a better look at the distraction, only to catch a glimpse of the back of two brunette girls- young women, from the looks of their obvious curves- slipping into his building before the double doors closed behind them. He sighed, resuming his trek down the street again. It wasn't long before he felt his pocket vibrate with a new text message.

**Dude, bro, girls are here. Where'd you flake out to? –Dre**

**Just had to get some air, I'll be back in a few minutes. –F**

Not 60 seconds later, Freddie heard his surname being called out as he made another pass by the building.

"Seriously, Benson? You're for real pacing out here while there are people of the female persuasion I want you to meet upstairs? What the hell, man, come inside already! I wanna introduce you to the rest of the gang; they'll love ya!" Andre exclaimed, throwing an arm around Freddie's shoulder and preventing him from continuing his route.

"I didn't know you were having them over, I don't need to be there, Dre, really. It's okay. They are yours and Beck's friends; I don't want to intrude on anything. If I had known you were having them over I wouldn't have even come down, really it's okay. I have some stuff I can-"

Andre cut off the quick rambling, smiling at the nervous tick he'd picked up on about his smaller friend. "Dude, they aren't gonna bite cha. They're super chill, well, besides Jade but I'll make sure Cat handles her so no worries there," he mumbled the last part, more to himself, then steered them back toward their building and up the stairs. "Besides, I invited them over on purpose to meet you, since you're part of our group now anyway; kinda defeats the point in having them over if the person they're to meet isn't there, right?"

Freddie just sighed, resigned to his fate, and smoothed out his shirt of any nonexistent wrinkles as Andre's apartment door came into view. Voices could be heard muffled through the door as they approached and Andre couldn't contain his grin, he knew Freddie would fit right in as soon as he got over this annoying shyness.

Throwing open the door, Andre released Freddie's shoulders to wrap his arms around a brunette who was facing towards Beck in the living room with her back towards them, slightly obscured by the wall separating the kitchen from the living room. She squealed, turning to hug the darker boy back and laughing as he picked her up and swung her in a circle before putting her back on her feet. Andre moved farther into the living room and proceeded to take the same action with a tiny girl with, was that bright red hair? Freddie shook his head watching his friends interact with these girls, only just now noticing the third female standing closer to Beck and facing towards him. She was the only one he could really see clearly from his position slightly behind the wall so he took the time to observe her while he was still unnoticed.

She was the tallest of the three, but still shorter than all three boys, with dark almost black hair and bright green eyes. She wore dark eye makeup that made her eyes stand out that much more and contrasted surprisingly well with her pale skin and had a slim ring adorning her left eyebrow, giving her an edgy look. He let his eyes roam over her figure, noting she was slim but certainly had curves in all the right places, specifically right above where her arms were crossed over her torso, accenting said curves even more. As Freddie was giving her one more glance, he shuddered when he reached her face, noticing the sadistic smirk playing at her lips and her piercing gaze boring into his being, pierced eyebrow raised in question.

"Who's the stalker you brought in with you, Andre? He looks like Robbie, minus the puppet," she snipped, her voice lower than the other two girls and tinged in accusation.

Andre paused what he was saying, leaning around the first girl he hugged, to see Freddie still lingering by the front door. "C'mon in, Benson, don't be a weirdo!" Andre waved him over, spinning him to face the small circle once he was close enough to reach.

Now facing the other two people he hadn't previously seen, Freddie's breath caught in his throat and he swallowed with difficulty as he felt his face flush. "Guys, this is Freddie Benson. He lives down the hall and is going to UCLA with us in a few days. He's from Seattle so Beck and I have been trying to get him used to the wonder that is LA and show him the ropes. Figured he could use a few more friends while we were at it." Andre pointed out the girls in the order he had hugged them. "Benson, this is Tori, Cat, and the sarcastic one is Jade."

Freddie gave a small wave and weak smile as Tori's coffee-colored eyes seemed to brighten with recognition. "Hey! You're that guy I ran into the other day outside that sushi place!"

The boy in question blushed more as all eyes turned to him, shoving his hands in his pockets and nodding sheepishly. The other four friends looked back and forth between Tori and Freddie a few times before sharing knowing smiles. It was the redhead who broke the short silence.

"Nice to meet you, Freddie! I'm Cat and this is my girlfriend, Jade. Sorry about what she said earlier, it wasn't very nice," here the small girl smacked her girlfriend in the stomach making her groan before continuing, "You don't seem like a stalker and I don't think you'd stalk Beck and Andre… Unless you're gay, then I guess that'd make sense and you do seem kind of scrawny so maybe you are… Are you gay, Freddie?" Everyone kind of gaped at the small redhead for a few seconds, trying to decipher what all was said in that one breath.

Freddie's eyes widened comically before he sputtered out a response. "N-no, I-I'm not gay! I mean, n-not that there's any-anything wrong with t-that. No, I mean, I like girls, and like, I mean I'm j-just friends with Beck and Dre, n-nothing more!"

Everyone laughed, even a blushing Freddie tried to chuckle a bit, before Andre slapped his back and mentioned they should order food to go with the alcohol. Freddie froze as he took in the various bottles lined up on display in the kitchen surrounded by mixers. He'd had a beer or two with Sam when they had their little fling but he'd never tried most of the things sitting in front of him. _Some get-together, _he thought sarcastically, mentally cursing Sam's habit rubbing off on him._ Shit, what if I do something stupid or embarrass myself in front of the first girls I meet in LA, especially Tori? I don't even know what I'm like when I drink! They may not want to be my friends after this… Fuck, this is the type of stuff Sam does… What'd I get myself into this time?_

XXX

It had been three days since Freddie had called Carly and the girls had yet to hear from him again. Carly figured it had something (or everything) to do with his "new and upgraded life" that evidently had nothing to do with them, and she was trying really hard to understand and respect that. Sam wasn't taking it quite as civilly. After the initial anger when Carly had told her about the short conversation, Sam had resorted to fuming silently on the matter and refusing to talk about anything remotely connected with the dorky boy they once called a best friend. Honestly, it was sort of disconcerting for the brunette. She'd never seen her blonde counter-part so torn up about something. Sam always put on this badass front, like nothing could get to her, with walls so high they rivaled the Great Wall of China. But Carly knew better. She knew that behind the façade, Sam was incredibly loyal to the few she called friends; they were her family since her real family left her early on in life. It was the only thing that could explain why Sam was taking Freddie's departure so hard. That day, Freddie proved to harden her heart by doing what everyone else had always done: leave her. And, though she would never admit it to herself, let alone Carly, Sam felt abandoned.

Carly sighed again, like she'd been doing frequently in the last month or so since a third of their group went AWOL. Sam was perched on the futon under her lofted bed, munching on some Cool Ranch Doritos and zoning out to an old season 2 episode of Glee.

"God, this Santana chick fuckin' rocks. She kicks ass while taking numbers and looks damn sexy doin' it," Sam muttered around a mouthful of chips, crumbs flinging everywhere causing Carly to cringe in disgust.

"Must you speak with your mouth full, hun?" Carly asked, exasperated at having to chide her best friend about manners constantly. It'd only been two weeks of living together on campus and even though Sam was more often at her apartment in Seattle than anywhere else, living with her fulltime brought out a whole new light on the nuances of Sam's personality that tended to get under Carly's skin. It wasn't all bad; no, a lot of it was exactly what she always imagined it'd be, but it sure was different.

Bright blue eyes glanced up from the small TV sitting on top of the shared dresser in the corner of their dorm. "I'm just stating the obvious, Carls. You can't tell me you wouldn't totally have a lady boner for this girl if you ever met her in person," the blonde snarked back with a smirk not unlike that of her favorite Glee character.

"Well, she does remind me of someone…" Carly trailed off, turning back to her computer and smiling coyly when she felt Sam's eyes still on her. Carly shook her head and scrolled through old iCarly videos and comments, propping her fist under her chin. It felt like a lifetime ago when they made all of these, which, to be fair, some were made several years ago, but most were made right up until just the months prior. So much had changed since their last post in July. Sam and Carly were at Eastern Washington University planning to study Pre-Law via Communications and English Literature, respectively, while Freddie was off in sunny California pursuing his film degree and hoping to direct and produce his own movies some day. Even Spencer was starting to really make a name for himself in the art scene with his unique sculptures. Everyone was growing up and starting to do great things with their lives. So why did it feel like they were growing apart, too? And why was she so apprehensive for things to come?

XXX

**Hey, T. What are you girls up to tonight? –Dre**

The brunette jumped as her phone vibrated violently in her back pocket, nearly knocking her off the couch she and Cat were lounging on while watching reruns of New Girl. She smiled when she saw the text from her best guy friend.

**Nada lata! Cat and I are watching New Girl while Jade thinks up new ways to torture me, I'm sure. =/ -T**

**Haha! She's gotten better, Tori, give her some credit. Anyway, was wondering if you girls wanted to join us for a bite and maybe some drinks tonight, kinda an end of summer kick off? –Dre**

Tori raised an eyebrow at that suggestion. Sure her boys liked to have a good time, but they weren't usually the ones to host these things, just the ones who had the invites to wherever the parties were. Something seemed different this time. Biting her lip, Tori shrugged before calling out into the spacious apartment.

"Hey, you guys wanna head to Beck and Andre's in a while for dinner and drinks? Guess they're wanting to end the summer right or something."

Cat squealed with excitement next to her, bouncing up and down and wiggling as best she could in her squished, horizontal position lying next to Tori. A grunt was heard from the master bedroom Jade and Cat shared. Tori turned to Cat, raising an eyebrow asking for her to translate, and the little redhead just smiled bigger. The brunette shrugged again, taking that as a 'yes', and sent a text saying they'd be there around 6pm. Andre was quick to text back how "stoked" he was to see them, making Tori's suspicion just rise considering they'd seen both boys not even 48 hours ago. _What's this kid got up his sleeve this time? It better not end in an ER visit again… They're gonna know our first names there soon._

A few hours later, Tori linked arms with Cat and the pair headed out of their building and across the grassy quad towards Building C, Jade trailing behind them playing on her iPhone. Within minutes they were turning the corner towards the front of Andre and Beck's building that was catty-corner to their own. Tori noticed a guy standing a few yards past the front doors, checking what looked like his phone and then rubbing his hands down his pants before turning to walk in the opposite direction. As the three girls reached the doors, Tori holding it open for her friends, she saw the guy turn again and make his way slowly back down the sidewalk. From what she could see, he was pretty cute, if not a little dorky looking, and he definitely looked lost. Smiling to herself, Tori turned and followed Jade into the air-conditioned lobby and then up to the third floor, shaking her head and thinking about goofy tourists.

After a weird and slightly awkward introduction to the reason Andre wanted the girls to come over so badly (to meet the boy Tori had seen outside, and had actually ran into a few days earlier), everyone settled down in the living room with a fresh drink and three large pizzas on their way. Beck had foolishly let Jade pick the movie they watched first so of course the main menu for Saw IV was queuing up on the flat screen mounted on the wall. Tori had never liked horror or slasher films but they were Jade's favorite so she wasn't surprised by the taller girl's selection for the evening; she just hoped she didn't scream too loud at some point and embarrass herself in front of the cute boy.

Thirty minutes into the movie and two slices of pizza later, Tori was starting to freak herself out more than even the movie was, so she focused mainly on her Jack and Coke, draining it quickly so she had an excuse to leave the room for a few minutes. As she was pouring the dark soda over the liquor and ice already in her cup, Freddie walked into the kitchen, claiming to need a bottle of water, and they exchanged bashful smiles.

When the boy turned around from the refrigerator and started walking back towards the living room, water in hand, Tori spoke up. "So, why'd you move all the way down here?"

Freddie paused, turning back towards Tori and leaning against the doorway separating them from the others in the other room. "Mostly for school. UCLA has a great film and production focus with well known professors and close connections. Plus, it's LA; this is kinda where the majority of all movie magic is made, ya know?" he replied quietly, trying not to disturb the movie, and giving a small shrug like that explained everything.

Tori felt kind of foolish for her question; of course he'd be in California for school when his interest was in film. What better place to go? She took a long pull at her drink, nodding in understanding and trying to think of something, anything, else to ask the boy in front of her to keep him in the kitchen longer. After a few moments, pieces of a puzzle started to come together in Tori's mind. "Wait a sec, aren't you the guy from that web show? What was it called… Ummm… Like iParty or iMarly or something like that?"

The boy blushed a light pink, ducking his head like he had earlier when Tori had called him out on their first interaction in front of the sushi place. "Yeah, iCarly. I was the film director/camera man/technology producer for the show."

"Yeah, that was it, iCarly! I thought you looked kinda familiar. I only saw a few episodes of that show but it was pretty funny from what I remember. Those two girls were a trip," Tori lamented, chuckling slightly with the memories of the goofy things the main characters would do.

A frown quickly replaced the sheepish look on Freddie's face and he bit the inside of his cheek for a few seconds. Tori took notice of the change in mood, watching Freddie's eyebrows scrunch together and his lips form a thin line. The few times she'd seen Freddie on camera for the scarce moments with the two girls, they'd all seemed really close, so why was he acting like they died or something?

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but what happened? Are they okay?" Tori asked, taking a few steps closer to the taller boy.

A sigh slipped out between pursed lips. "Yeah, no. They're fine, we just kind of got into a fight when I left, I guess. I may or may not have told them I was leaving before I actually did…"

This time it was Tori who made noise, she gasped. "Wow, that's harsh. You guys all seemed close, why wouldn't you tell them you were going to school out of the state? Weren't they happy for you?"

"I knew they wouldn't take it well and I just didn't want to deal with the emotional aspect of it all. I mean, it was hard enough getting my mom to let me come in the first place. It would have been torture to sit through Carly's happy-for-me-yet-depressed-I'm-leaving moods and I'm sure Sam would have either killed me for the thought of breaking up our trio or chained me to a pole until classes started so I would have no choice but to stay in Washington. I lived in Seattle all of my life and I was always just Carly and Sam's best friend, the tech genius behind the camera. I wanted a clean break from that, a blank slate to start over and make a name for myself without being associated with anyone else first. But I do feel really bad. It took me almost a month to finally call them back after daily voice mails and text messages from both of them, and I don't think they are taking it well."

As Freddie talked, Tori progressively got closer and closer to him until they were standing about two feet apart. She had one arm wrapped around her stomach and the other bent, occasionally lifting to bring her drink to her mouth, while Freddie was fidgeting with the hem of his shirt and looking everywhere but at the girl in front of him. It took almost a full minute of silence before Tori spoke again.

"Well, I can't say I am surprised they aren't happy. I can only imagine how I'd react if Andre or Beck or even Jade were to disappear one day and not return my phone calls for a month." Freddie cringed, shoving his hands deeper in his pockets and nodding in guilt. "But, I get that you wanted to start over. I think everyone does after high school. I am sorry to hear things are rocky between you and Carly and Sam right now. Hopefully they will come around in time. 'Til then and after, you've got us and like Andre said, I'll show you the ropes of SoCal living." Tori smiled when she saw the corners of her new friend's mouth twitch upwards, not realizing her word slip. Thinking quickly, she topped off their drinks and grabbed Freddie's hand, pulling him through the living room and out onto the balcony, shutting the door behind them and completely missing the smirk and raised eyebrow Jade threw after the pair.


End file.
